Seattle Weather

For Foodies

The Emerald City has no shortage of seasonal food and festive drink. Cheers all the way!

Tess Owen

SEASONAL TREATS

Seattle architects and builders swap concrete for cookies during the Sheraton Seattle’s 25th annual Gingerbread Village at City Centre. Vote on your favorite gingerbread- and candy-based creation, all reflecting this year’s anniversary theme “25 Years of Cheer: A Celebration of Seattle.” Builders pay homage to the rich structural history of the Emerald City by showcasing everything from underground tunnels to towering skyscrapers. Bonus: The event raises funds and awareness for the Northwest chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. For cookies you can sample, head to CookieFest at the Seattle Center’s Armory Loft. This large-scale bake sale features thousands of batches of cookies from bakeries and culinary schools around Puget Sound. All proceeds go toward Seattle Milk Fund’s child care grant program—because who doesn’t want to indulge their sweet tooth while supporting local families?

Gingerbread Village: November 21–January 1

CookieFest: December 9, 11am–1pm

FESTIVE BEVERAGES

Belltown bar Rob Roy gets a Miracle on 34th Street (er, Second Street) makeover, serving up festive cocktails like the Snowball Old Fashioned (made with gingerbread bourbon), Run Run Rudolph (iced hot chocolate spiked with tequila), and Bad Santa (mulled red wine with port, orange liqueur, and spices). Expect everything to be decked out to fit the kitschy-fun holiday theme, from the décor to the glassware.

Find your new favorite seasonal draft at this seasonal beer bonanza held in Magnuson Park. More than 50 Washington breweries offer pours of their winter brews at this holiday tasting event (including Seattle-based favorites like Stoup Brewing and Fremont Brewing), from stouts to barrel-aged beers.

Sip on Sun Liquor Distillery’s ever-elusive eggnog, which is made in small batches and available for a limited time during the holiday season. This year, the distillery released bottles of its 30-day-aged eggnog—mixed with brandy, rum, and bourbon—early at designated pop-ups and retail locations in mid-November. If you miss the rush, though, don’t worry—enjoy a glass on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at Sun Liquor’s pint-size Capitol Hill bar.

With options spanning apple and ginger pear to bourbon butterscotch, A la Mode Pies makes it difficult to pick the hit pie of the holiday party (and there’s no shame in just ordering a slice on the spot). The bakery chainlet in Phinney Ridge and West Seattle gets extra style points, as it uses mainly organic and locally sourced fruit.

Can’t decide between pumpkin or pecan? Skip the family feud and head straight to the SoDo or Belltown locations of Macrina Bakery, where you can order a pecan streusel pumpkin pie to satisfy even the pickiest relatives. If you think your feast needs a bit more flare, pick up a pecan pie spiked with brandy and flavored with orange zest.

Seattle staple Bakery Nouveau offers standard pie flavors like pumpkin, pecan, and apple, as well as twists on the classics, like pumpkin cheesecake and chocolate pecan. And given its French leanings, the holiday Buche de Noel (Yule log cake) is a must. Pre-order desserts—or buy them by the slice—in Capitol Hill or West Seattle.